1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to the field of devices for reading data from cards and forms. In particular the invention concerns such a device wherein a read head apparatus such as a bar code scanning wand or the like is useable alternatively as a hand held scanner and as the read head of a slot reader, thereby precluding the need for two read heads for these two functions. The manual scanner is mountable in a receptacle in a housing which orients the read head for slot scanning, and removable from the receptacle for manual scanning. The invention is particularly useful in connection with terminals for validating lottery tickets and the like, for reading merchandise labels, for reading customer carried indicia such as credit cards, etc.
2. Prior Art
Devices are well known for reading data which is encoded on a data carrier such as a card, label sheet or article of merchandise. Without limitation, such data carriers are described herein as "forms". Readers are available to detect and to store or transmit optical or magnetic data on a form, and printers or writers are likewise available to record the data on the form. The data may be a representation of information as bar code, magnetic variations along a strip of ferromagnetic material, or characters of a type readable either by machines or by humans, such as optical character recognition data (OCR). These types of data encode information on tags attached to articles of merchandise, on bank checks, on credit cards, on lottery tickets and various other items. The data typically represents an indication of the identity of the article, its characteristics, or a unit of value associated with the article.
The encoded data typically is written linearly on the form, for example as a series of parallel lines in a bar code which vary in spacing, thickness or the like to encode the data. Similarly, magnetically induced variations in a ferromagnetic stripe can record data by their presence or absence, and printed characters in distinct shapes can be scanned and recognized as OCR data. In order to read a line of encoded data, either the data carrier or form is moved linearly past the head or heads of a data reader, or the data reader is moved linearly past the data carrier.
It is known to place the read heads of a data reader along the walls of a housing which defines a slot through which the form can be passed. The form rests against the bottom of the slot and thus positions the strip of data at a predetermined and repeatable orientation and spacing from the read head or heads of the data reader. The slot guides the data carrying part of the form past the data reader as the form is pushed manually through the slot. The form can also be moved automatically through the slot, or a plurality of successive forms can be fed through the reader by a suitable form feeder.
Hand-held data readers are also known. Typically a wand or pen-shaped device is manually moved along the line of encoded data, such scanning wands usually being adapted to bar code reading because the bar code does not require a particular orientation of the reader to the data carrier. Bar code readers are sometimes arranged to provide a scanning beam such that the read head is simply placed over the bar code and held there as the scanning beam is directed at the data carrying strip. Similar forms of readers can be used to detect OCR data or magnetically recorded data.
Hand-held data readers or "wands" communicate with a terminal through a wire, cord or the like, allowing a certain freedom of movement of the reader to effect manual scanning or positioning of the read heads relative to a form which is positioned at the user's convenience. Hand-held devices provide versatility for reading data carriers at a distance from the terminal, and it is generally quicker and easier to hand scan forms attached to articles, or to read each form in a group (e.g., stack) of forms, than it is to feed or position the forms to be read by a fixed data reader, as mounted in a slot.
Hand-held scanning devices are somewhat less dependable and less convenient for reading individual forms than sliding the forms through a slot reader. This is true, for example, because it takes two hands to wand a bar coded form but only one hand to slide the form through a slot. Hand held scanners may not read dependably if an optimum distance and angle of incidence with respect to the data carrier on the form is not maintained by the operator, and the operator must manually control the distance (usually by placing the read head directly against the form) and angle. A slot reader on the other hand is designed such that the optimum distance and viewing angle is maintained because the form is repeatably positioned by the inherent structure of the slot and the read head is fixed at an optimal position and angle in the slot. The slot reader can also have a form edge sensor for gating data only when a form is sensed to be present, and it is difficult to achieve a similar function in connection with a wand. In short, there are advantages to each type of reader, slot or wand. Known data input apparatus are sometimes provided with both a slot reader and a wand, or at least an input port to which a wand can be coupled is provided in addition to the slot reader.
The advantages and the shortcomings of the two types of readers can be appreciated in connection with typical functions of lottery agent terminals. The lottery agent when accepting or issuing single lottery entry forms to individual players will find a slot reader to be more convenient than a wand. The form need only be slid through the slot reader with one hand to dependably read the data, and at this phase in processing each form is handled separately. The agent may be required at times to deal with a stack of data, for example when receiving a stack of forms into inventory. Instead of unstacking, feeding and restacking the forms, it may be more convenient to turn up the edges of the forms in a stack and to scan them without unstacking them. Similarly, certain functions are possible which involve reading coded information apart from forms, or for reading coded information on non-standard forms, i.e., those for which the heads in the slot reader are not properly aligned. For these functions the wand is more convenient.
A retail clerk may also find both a wand and a slot reader to be useful. Tags attached to articles of merchandise cannot be readily run through a slot reader unless the tags are first removed from the merchandise or unless the merchandise is moved to the reader, both of which are undesirable. Therefore a wand is appropriate. On the other hand, customer forms such as credit cards, coupons and the like are most easily read using a slot reader.
The present invention provides a means to resolve the differences between fixed read head apparatus such as slot readers, and movable read head apparatus such as wands. Nevertheless, the full advantages of both types of readers are fully retained. A data reader is provided with a wand which is operable in a hand-held manner, and also is insertable into a receptacle in a housing which defines a slot for a form. The housing has engagement means that fix the wand in place with respect to the slot, including for example a fixed predetermined spacing of the wand input head from the form and a fixed optimal angle of orientation of the wand input head to the form. The receptacle fixes the wand in place to operate as dependably as a fixed input head in a slot reader. When desired, the operator can remove the wand from the receptacle in the housing, preferably by manually releasing a spring clip, and the wand is provided with a length of connecting cord allowing freedom of movement for hand scanning. When removed from the housing the wand is useful in the manner of a regular free moving wand. The invention thus provides the benefits of both types of scanning input means, but requires only one apparatus.
The device of the invention can be embodied as a feature of a terminal such as a point of sale terminal or lottery agent terminal, thereby adding movable wand capabilities to a device that formally was provided with a slot reader and separate wand or auxiliary wand input port. The invention can be embodied as an add-on housing to be attached externally to the housing of a terminal (or mounted as convenient on a nearby countertop, etc.) that formerly was provided only with movable wand input capability, thereby adding a slot reader function to the terminal. Additional variations will occur to persons skilled in the art who are made aware of the invention.